The new Honda Prelude hybrid sports coupe has hit the tarmac rolling, with its first month of sales seeing it leading the sports car segment sales race for the month.
Honda Australia registered 142 new Preludes in May, pipping the enduringly popular Ford Mustang (127) and BMW 2 Series Coupe (94) ranges to take the sports car sales crown across both the under $90,000 and over $90,000 price segments.
It’s worth noting, however, that this is the first month of registrations for the Prelude nameplate, and the months ahead will be a better measure of the new coupe’s popularity.
For reference, the Mustang has returned 1054 registrations year to date from January through to the end of May.
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The arrival of the sixth-generation 2026 Honda Prelude marks the end of a 25-year hiatus for the Japanese brand’s sports car nameplate, last sold locally way back in 2001.
The Prelude has often served as a showcase for the brand, debuting multiple new features and technologies for the brand – in 1978 the original was the first Honda to feature a power moonroof, while the third-gen Prelude debuted four-wheel steering.
While the latest model doesn’t have rear-wheel steering, it does debut Honda’s ‘S+ Shift’ system, which simulates an eight-speed automatic for dynamic driving despite the fact its Civic-derived e:HEV series-parallel hybrid system uses an e-CVT.
It combines with Active Sound Control – which produces a “powerful engine sound in sync with engine RPM” – to try and offer a traditional compact sports car driving experience with the efficiency of modern hybrid technology.
Pricing for the 2026 Honda Prelude starts from $65,000 drive-away in Australia, with just one trim level available Down Under.
While $10,000 dearer than the Civic e:HEV LX which shares the same basic drivetrain, the Prelude goes some way to justifying the extra spend with a bespoke 2+2 sports coupe body, as well as the dual-axis front suspension setup and adaptive dampers pinched from the Civic Type R hot hatch.
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